Washington — In one of the most creative attacks on a presidential candidate, at least in recent history, a couple of Connecticut political activists are trying to raise political cash from dog lovers who are howling mad at how Mitt Romney years ago treated his dog.To hound the presumptive GOP nominee, Martin Dunleavy, a former New Haven alderman and member of the Democratic National Committee, and Larry Atherton, an IT project manager and nursing student

Simsbury, have helped found a new Connecticut-based Super PAC called “Mitt is Mean — The Animal Lovers Against Romney Committee.””It was started by a lot of animal lovers who were angry,” said Brad Bannon, spokesman for the Mitt is Mean PAC. “I mean, who would treat a dog like that?”For the few who havent heard the story:In 1983, Romney packed his family into a station wagon for a 12-hour vacation trip to Canada. There was no room in the vehicle for Irish setter Seamus, the family dog, so Romney put him in a crate, which he tied to the roof of the car. The frightened dog soiled himself, the waste rolling down the windows of the car. An unflappable Romney hosed the crate, Seamus and the car down at a gas station and continued the trip.”His treatment of Seamus is a window into his soul,” Bannon said. “A guy who treats a dog like that cant be trusted.”